Raptors hold off Bucks

Terrence Ross and Lou Williams added 16 and 15 points, respectively, off the bench to help the Raptors end a two-game slide. The Atlantic Division leaders had also lost seven of nine.

Jonas Valanciunas and Patrick Patterson had 13 rebounds apiece.

The win came despite Raptors star DeMar DeRozan shooting 0-for-9 from the floor, going scoreless for the first time since April 11, 2010.

The Bucks took a pair of one-point leads on O.J. Mayo buckets near the midpoint of the fourth quarter, but Toronto countered with seven straight, including Lowry's three-point play that put the Raptors in front for good.

Three times after that the Bucks got back within a point, but they never got over the hump. Khris Middleton's layup with 49 seconds left made it 88-87, but late in the shot clock at the other end, Ross hit a baseline jumper. Brandon Knight then got a difficult layup to fall and the Bucks allowed Ross to get behind the defense for an uncontested dunk with 15 seconds to play.

Knight had a clean look from 3 to tie the game after a terrific pick by Ersan Ilyasova, but it was off the mark and Lowry secured the rebound. He missed two free throws to leave the door open, but Mayo lost the ball trying to rush it up the court as the game ended.

"I think we needed this type of win tonight," said Lowry. "The fact that it was competitive, it wasn't a blowout, it was a good game. We did a good job of handling the pressure."

Knight had 20 points, five rebounds and five assists in the setback, posting at least those numbers for the third straight game. Ilyasova chipped in 14 in a reserve role.

"We felt good, but we have to get better at our pace and rebounding the ball," said Bucks coach Jason Kidd.

The Raptors led by as many as 10 points late in the second quarter.

Game Notes

Toronto has taken two of the three meetings this season. The series finale is in Toronto on Feb. 2 ... Ross came off the bench for the first time this season ... Lowry shot 8-for-25.